Code Name: Genesis (Jameson Force Security #1)(47)

CHAPTER 21




Kynan


“Tell me you can find the fucker,” I growl as I pace the interior of Joslyn’s office with my phone in hand. She’s sitting in her desk chair, eyes glued on me.

Bebe’s voice comes to me over the speaker on my phone. She’s remote accessed Joslyn’s computer to see the email from the Jameson offices in Vegas. “I’ll try, but I doubt I’ll have any luck. This guy has major skills. I’m sure he’s used a VPN or even the dark web to obscure his location.”

Not good enough. “Bloody hell, Bebe. I sprung you from prison. You’ve got to give me more than ‘I can try’.”

Joslyn’s eyes flare wide, because my tone is almost threatening in nature. Sighing, I prepare to apologize, but Bebe doesn’t seem fazed. Her voice is bland. “I can only do so much with the laptop you bought me, Kynan. You want me to locate this guy, then it’s going to take equipment you can’t buy on the open market.”

That gets my attention. “But there is a way if I got you the right stuff?”

“Yeah, sure,” she replies. “It’s all black-market stuff, which I’m sensing doesn’t matter to you. But it will take time, and I’m betting we don’t have that.”

“Fuck,” I mutter, scrubbing my hand through my hair in agitation. Joslyn stands from her chair. “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to start dinner,” she replies softly. “You don’t need me involved in this.”

“Hold on, Bebe,” I say, then tap the “mute” button. Moving to Joslyn, I put my hand on her shoulder.

Dipping my head, I put my eyes level with hers. “You okay?”

Her smile is wan, but it doesn’t appear to be forced. “I’m fine. You’re doing your thing with Bebe, and you don’t need me in here for that. I’m better off staying busy, so I’ll go start dinner.”

It’s hard for me to understand how just five minutes ago, I was turning on the shower in Joslyn’s master bath with about a million dirty thoughts in my head. Then her scream almost had my heart exploding. When I read that fucker’s email, I almost stroked out.

It’s what I’d wanted to happen. I wanted to goad him into action, but now I have his undivided attention, I’m feeling a little unsure of just how prepared I am. Bebe not being able to wave a magic wand to find this guy by his email isn’t something I want to really hear right now.

What I want is this guy’s address so I can track him down, probably beat him with my bare hands until he’s a bloody mess, and then haul him off to the police station.

I pull Joslyn toward me, brush my mouth against hers, and murmur, “Don’t start dinner. We’re going out instead, so go ahead and hit the shower.”

“We are?”

“Yeah. If this guy is watching you closely as I suspect, I don’t want him to think this has you rattled in any way. I want him to see you strong, and he’s totally going to see us as a unit.”

Joslyn sighs. She’s a little tired of all the hobnobbing and socializing we’ve done the last few days as we’ve splashed ourselves around the celebrity circuit. We had both been looking forward to a quiet evening in.

But now her stalker is good and pissed, and I want to throw it in his face she’s not scared. We’re not intimidated.

And if I’m lucky, he might make a move in public. I’ve got security on her house so tight the chances of him trying to attack her on this turf is unlikely. Him finding her on her own is more than unlikely because Joslyn’s not going anywhere outside this house without me or a suitable alternative.

“Go on,” I urge, relieved when she goes to her tiptoes to put a kiss on my lips. It’s soft and lingering without a hint of sex, but it speaks volumes to me. She turns without another word, leaving her office.

When she’s disappeared, I reconnect the call to Bebe. “I’m back. Listen… do the best you can. When you get a free moment, I want you to compile your dream list of equipment along with a rough estimate of the cost. And when I say dream list, I’m not just talking about for the stuff we’re doing now. Anything you can imagine that would give you access to anything we could ever dream of doing. Do you understand?”

“As long as you’re not going to ask me to use this stuff for evil,” Bebe drawls, and it makes me laugh.

“Do the best you can right now with what you have. Push whatever boundaries you need to. I’ve got your back.”

“I know you do,” she replies, and it occurs to me that she’s put a lot of trust in me in a truly short amount of time. She’s either a really good judge of character or she knows she’s got nothing left to lose. “Also… if you have contacts with the FBI as I suspect you do, they have the means to track this type of thing to an exact location. Of course, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be where this guy is living or anything. But if you have a favor owed there, I’d collect on it.”

“When we hang up, tell Rachel to call Ted Griss,” I reply because it just so happens, I do. “He owes me a couple of favors, and she’ll get him working on this.”

“One more thing.” Her tone is hesitant, almost as if she had to work up the guts to tell me something. “I have an idea that might be able to lead us to him if he continues to send her stuff through the internet.”